A Dog's Life
by Sanni-O
Summary: Sanji doesn't believe in soulmates. He believes in love. But one day he meets his soulmate by chance-just to find that he ended up with a dog. That is when his dreams about a man in his bed begin. Is it possible to fall for a dream? Or is there more to life than he acknowledges? / ZoSan / One Shot / Soulmate AU


**A Dog's Life**

Hello everybody!

It's me again. This time I'll try and keep you entertained with a nice little one shot about love. As expected of me. I would be delighted if you let me know your opinion on the story.

Thank you in advance and now enjoy reading.

Yours, Sanni-O

 **-xXx-**

The weather was nice and the sun was shining but it wasn't hot outside, just warm enough to enjoy lunch in the sunshine without freezing.

Sanji had set up a few tables outside the Baratie in the small garden they had so their customers could enjoy the weather while enjoying their food.

Like every Thursday Nami, Usopp and Luffy were visiting him to have late lunch at the Baratie. And like every Thursday for the past few weeks they were talking about the same topic.

"Nami, love, I know soulmates exist. I just don't believe in being destined for someone," Sanji tried to explain his feelings about the one and only topic since they had come of age to find their soulmates. It was a fact that along the Grand Line everything was possible-but that didn't mean a thing. Truth be told, Grand Island they all were living on was big enough to up their chances of finding a proper lover. But it wasn't the world. If you had a soulmate-which was possible but not mandatory-he or she could be born anywhere around the world. You chances of meeting were barely existent and Sanji didn't want to spend his life searching the seas for a possible soulmate if he could probably find love just around the corner.

"But aren't you curious?" she asked and Usopp added, "I already met my soulmate and I wouldn't want to miss her for anything."

Sanji smiled a half-faked smile at that. It was exactly why he didn't want to know if he even had a soulmate or not. If Kaya hadn't proved to be Usopp's soulmate both of them would have been devastated.

"What does it feel like to meet your soulmate?" Sanji asked looking over to Luffy, who was playing with a large grey dog that looked more fierce-and somewhat annoyed-than any dog Sanji had ever seen in his life. It was a miracle that the beast hadn't tried to kill Luffy already. At least he supposed it hadn't and they were really just playing.

"It's hard to describe," Usopp tried to voice his feelings. "It's not as pompous as you might imagine it. There's no feeling of being whole or something fairy tale like. No glowing light, no angel choir, no sudden wind or anything. It just feels like... being home, I guess."

"That's it?" Sanji asked frowning and somehow he felt like an arse for his reaction. Usopp just shook his head.

"I said it was hard to describe. Have you ever had a hard day and were looking forward to taking a nice hot bath to ease your sore muscles?" he tried again to explain.

Sanji just raised an eyebrow at him and lit up a cigarette. He had hard days every day of his life. Even now he was just talking to his friends because there were no other guests at the Baratie he had to pay attention to.

"Imagine the feeling when you finally relax into the water and all your stress is drained from your body," Usopp finished his explanation.

So having a soulmate was lacking any passion. Great. Another point for his 'No, thank you' list.

"Sanji!" Luffy yelled across the lawn and ran towards him, followed by a now exhausted and unhappy looking dog. "Zoro's hungry! And I want meat too!"

"And who the hell is Zoro?" Sanji asked looking at Luffy in question while the boy dropped onto his chair.

"He is," Luffy said pointing at the dog who was staring at Sanji in a mixture of anger and awe. For a dog it sure had an expressive face. "I heard his stomach rumbling."

"Well, then there's nothing I can say against feeding him," Sanji shrugged and squatted down in front of the dog. Since he was wearing a collar he wasn't a stray and maybe Sanji was lucky and on one of the three plates hanging from the collar was a note on allergies or anything he had to consider feeding the beast. The only plate having anything written on it was the one in the middle. It stated Zoro. Nothing more.

"Your owner sure is an idiot," Sanji sighed and looked at Zoro who was still staring at him. Sanji finally noticed that the dog had a large scar across its left eye but apart from that it really was a beautiful creature. "So, what shall I get you?" he mused while petting the dog's neck. It felt weird to be so comfortable around an obviously fierce animal he was sure could bite his head off any time if it saw fit. The dog just leaned into his touch and licked his hand. The feeling it caused in Sanji's stomach was nearly giving him a heart attack despite soothing him to a level of calm he hadn't felt in forever, maybe never before. But it held a spark of joy and anticipation he remembered from when he had been a child and had seen the presents beneath the Christmas tree knowing one of them was for him. It felt like tasting a new creation and finding it seasoned to perfection.

He could feel the cigarette he had lit only moments ago slip from his lips.

Oh, great shitty hell, his soulmate was a dog. He rose back to his feet and started laughing like a madman.

"Sanji, are you alright?" Nami cautiously asked.

"Sure, my flower. I've never felt better," he said and went over to the kitchen to prepare something to eat for Zoro and Luffy. He could hear steps following him and when he turned around he saw Zoro right behind him.

"You can't follow me to the kitchen, stupid," he said and the dog sat down, slowly wagging its tail. "Wait here," Sanji commanded and left for the kitchen and this time no one followed him.

It took him about twenty minutes to cook rice, carrots and chicken for Zoro and steaks for Luffy. He had decided to approach feeding his newly gained friend with as much care as possible to make sure he wouldn't harm him by chance. You just didn't harm your soulmate, right?

Entering the dining hall of the Baratie he found Luffy sitting next to Zoro and enthusiastically talking to the poor thing. He was explaining Sanji's whole life as it seemed.

"And then they set up this restaurant here. I'm very grateful that Sanji is such a great cook and willing to feed me!" Luffy happily babbled. "But he refuses to feed me every day."

"That's because you are a freeloader and I can't afford feeding you every day," Sanji interrupted him while passing them by. Zoro was following on his heel as he went outside again and placed Luffy's plate on the table and Zoro's plate on the floor.

While Luffy immediately started inhaling the meat before he even had sat down properly Zoro just looked at Sanji.

"This is for you, dumbass," Sanji said pointing at the plate in front of the dog, "Eat it."

"Maybe he's not used to eating from a plate," Usopp suggested and Sanji frowned at him.

"It's a plate, not rocket science. I didn't ask him to use cutlery either."

Very carefully Zoro started eating. It was in no way what Sanji had expected the dog to do. He had expected it to wolf down the food just like Luffy did, but it didn't.

"So, what are we going to do with him?" Nami suddenly asked. "His owner might want him back."

"There was no name or anything on the tags of his collar," Sanji said shrugging his shoulders. "We might as well keep him." Of course, he would keep him. There was just no way in hell he would not keep him-and neither a former owner nor Zeff would be able to do anything about it! Possessive, wasn't he? A smile appeared on his lips.

"You won't be going anywhere, right?" he asked and crouched down next to Zoro who had finished his meal by now and looked at him before he nuzzled his head in Sanji's chest. Sanji wrapped his arms around the dog and buried his face in its fur. It felt like the perfectly right thing to do.

"So, little eggplant, you really think having yourself covered in dog fur adheres to hygienic standards?" Zeff suddenly boomed next to them. Zoro bolted out of Sanji's grip and growled at Zeff who just looked at him unimpressed.

"You know the answer damn well yourself, old man," Sanji replied and petted Zoro's head. "Now stop growling at him, idiot. This place is his, so mind your manners." Much to Sanji's surprise the dog fell silent and lay down, its tail lazily wagging again.

"Don't think I'll let you near the kitchen like this," Zeff said and turned to leave. "You can take care of serving customers for the time being."

When Sanji looked at his friends they were gaping at him.

"Sanji, you... you," Nami stuttered unable to voice her thoughts.

"I just got demoted," he said shrugging his shoulders. As long as he could keep Zoro around it didn't matter that much. He could still cook at home until he came up with an idea to keep Zoro and work in the kitchen at the same time. It couldn't be that hard, could it?

"I would take the dog," Usopp said but didn't look convinced. "I was a famous beast tamer once, but I guess Kaya would be scared of it."

"I can take him!" Luffy offered and Nami glared at him. "Think before you speak, rubber-head! We are not allowed to keep dogs in out apartments. I'm sorry, Sanji."

"It really doesn't bother me. I'll think of something and be back in the kitchen in no time." If something like this was possible, Zoro looked guilty.

Tending to the customers without having to cook for them as well had its own charm. Sanji had more time to talk to them, listen to their wishes or complaints regarding the food. Though complaints were really rare. Also, he had an awful lot of time to think about his current situation. Something about having a dog as a soulmate just couldn't be right. As far as Sanji knew something like this had never happened before. Unfortunately, his thinking didn't lead him anywhere. It just left him extremely exhausted and he was grateful when the Baratie closed and he could go to bed. As soon as his head touched his pillow he was out like a light.

It was when the dreams started.

Like any other dream it just started without a real introduction. Sanji simply found himself looking at the face of a man who was looking back at him with a soft smile on his lips. It was dark in the room Sanji recognised as his bedroom and he was still in his bed, but it was bright enough so he could see that the man's face was very similar to Zoro's. He had the same scar across his eye and the same pale grey eye colour.

His heart started racing but his brain just didn't work properly. He knew he should say something but didn't know what. The man stretched out a hand and tenderly caressed his cheek.

"Hi," the man said. It was stupid, really, but having a real face and a voice to what he recognised as his soulmate sent butterflies thrashing through his stomach.

"Hi," he replied enjoying the sensation of the warm hand on his face. "So this is what having a soulmate feels like," he whispered and the other man-Zoro, he decided-opened his mouth to answer but no words left it. He closed his mouth again and frowned a little before he shrugged his shoulder.

"I guess I can't tell you anything about it," he finally said. No surprise there. It was Sanji's dream after all and he had absolutely no idea about what was going on-so how could his imaginary dream mate know?

"What is your name?" he asked and the answer was not really a surprise.

"Zoro," the other man said.

"So, Zoro. What now? I've never had a strange dream like this before," Sanji said yawning and wondered how he could be tired in his sleep. Zoro smirked at him before he grabbed Sanji's arm and pulled him against his chest.

"Since it is your _dream_ and you are tired, why don't you sleep? I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to talk tomorrow night."

Sleeping sounded nice and touching Zoro's bare skin was really nice and soothing. He could hear the slow and steady heartbeat of the other man, feel his warmth and the last thing he noticed before the dream faded to black was that Zoro was naked.

When morning came Sanji woke up and felt like a million berries. He wasn't sure when he had slept so well the last time. Zoro was curled up next to him, still sleeping soundly-and he was still a dog. So he really had dreamt last night. About a guy. A naked guy in his bed. Well, why not? He had experienced weirder things in the past twenty-four hours.

He got up, took a shower and got dressed before he realised that he had nowhere to be so early in the morning. Having been demoted to customer service meant that he wouldn't have to take part in the preparations for lunch and dinner either. He went to the kitchen and brewed coffee for him and his old man before he got started on preparing breakfast. He juiced four oranges, and cooked porridge, which he afterwards seasoned with raspberries, almonds and a bit of brown sugar-except for Zoro's share. For him he grated carrots and courgette onto the porridge and placed it next to a bowl of water on the floor next to the table.

As soon as he was finished Zeff appeared in the door frame accompanied by Zoro who was looking at Sanji reproachfully.

"Good morning, little eggplant. You seem to be in a good mood today," Zeff greeted him and sat down at the kitchen table.

"Good morning to you, too. I guess I am. I slept really well," he said and smiled at Zoro. "What's with the grumpy face? You should smile more." Zoro just snorted.

"He's a dog, Sanji. They don't smile," Zeff explained as if Sanji was an idiot. Sanji just looked at him deadpan.

"Eat your porridge and stop ruining my morning, old man," he finally said and squatted down in front of Zoro to cuddle him. "Grumpy old fart just can't take it to see me happy," he murmured into Zoro's fur. "Now eat your porridge, puppy, and maybe you'll grow even bigger and stronger."

"Let's hope he doesn't," Zeff said rolling his eyes. "The damn beast is way too large for this tiny apartment anyway."

"It's not his fault that he is a bit larger than other puppies."

"He's not a puppy anymore either," Zeff insisted.

"You really like to spoil my fun," Sanji complained and sat down to eat breakfast. Zoro didn't look too happy about the vegetable on his breakfast but he ate it anyway.

"Since I won't have to show up to work until ten o'clock I guess I'll take him for a nice long walk."

"Who said you didn't have to show up for work?" Zeff asked more than a bit surprised.

"You did by demoting me. The tables will be laid in no time before the first customers come and I already replaced the table cloths and wiped the floor last night. There's no need for me to be there early."

"You could clean the windows," Zeff mused and his beard twitched with amusement when Sanji's face fell. Cleaning the windows was probably necessary but that didn't change the fact that it was Sanji's least favourite task.

"Fine," he said through grit teeth, "I'll do it this afternoon." He wasn't above showing a little gratitude for being allowed to keep Zoro without having an argument about it. It was beyond him why Zeff didn't even ask about his reasoning behind keeping a dog all of a sudden.

They finished breakfast in silence and after doing the washing up Sanji noticed that he had no leash for Zoro.

"You won't do unreasonable things while we're taking a walk, right?" he asked Zoro who just looked at him and wagged his tail. "I'll take that as a yes."

He slipped on his suit jacket, pocketed his cigarettes, lighter and keys and left the apartment with Zoro.

The day was even warmer than yesterday had been and the sun was shining brightly. It was perfect for taking a walk.

Zoro never strayed too far from his side. Every once in a while he took sudden turns and disappeared behind bushes and trees just to show up a moment later and to walk alongside him again as if nothing had happened. Zoro neither cared for dogs they passed by nor for any other animals they came across. The only noise that caught his attention for a moment was the laughter of children when they passed by the playground of a kindergarten.

Suddenly Zoro stopped in track and started snarling.

"What's wrong, Zoro?" Sanji asked and looked around to see what bothered him. But the only person approaching them was a tall young lady in a black and white striped dress with long pink hair. As she came closer Sanji could see that she was smiling at them.

"There you are," she said when she reached them and Sanji could see that Zoro's hackles had risen. "My, you really are not cute at all, Zoro," she said and turned her attention to Sanji.

"Who are you?" she asked and Sanji smiled at her.

"My name is Sanji. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," he said and simply ignored the fact that she knew Zoro. He wouldn't give him to her anyway, even if she was a lovely lady.

"I'm Perona," she introduced herself frowning at him. "Zoro used to live with me and an acquaintance of us before he decided on leaving us almost a week ago. For you as it seems."

Zoro growled at her again.

"I never said I would take you with me, did I?" she snapped at him and turned her attention back to Sanji. "I think he really likes you," she said and smiled. "Well, we'll see how things develop. But, Zoro, remember that you don't have forever to work things out. The end of your week is tomorrow." She waved at them and left without as much as another word.

"That really was weird," Sanji mumbled and flicked the butt of his spent cigarette to the ground. "Do you know what she was talking about?" he asked Zoro who was looking at him with such intensity it was creepy.

"So you do, eh? Honestly, I start doubting that you are an ordinary dog," Sanji mused and lit up another cigarette. Whatever was going on here was far from being ordinary. "Whatever, let's go home, Zoro."

Back at the Baratie Sanji noticed the fresh flowers which had been delivered. He put them into small vases and placed them onto the tables. It really wasn't much he had to do before the lunch rush, so he started polishing the glasses and the cutlery.

"This must be really boring for you," he said as he passed Zoro by who lay next to the bar and took a nap. Yawning he stood up and nuzzled his head against Sanji's leg before he lay down next to him behind the bar. Having him closer around immediately improved Sanji's mood and he could only roll his eyes at his bad luck again to end up with a dog as his soulmate.

"I tell you what," he said and sat down next to Zoro who rested his head on his lap immediately. "I didn't believe in all this soulmate bullshit. Unfortunately, meeting you proves me right that this is stupid." Zoro looked up at him. "Don't get me wrong, I really like having you around but I want to fall in love. I want to feel..." ...like last night, he thought as his voice left him.

"Do you believe in love at first sight?" he asked and started stroking Zoro's head. "I don't. I know it may look different because I usually fawn over every beautiful lady as if my life depended on it-but that's not the same. But last night I had a dream about you. Not the you right now but a human version of you. Wouldn't it be nice if you were human and we could fall in love for real?"

Zoro stood up and licked Sanji's cheek.

The door to the Baratie was opened and Sanji could hear light steps enter.

"I've got work to do," he said and rose to his feet after kissing Zoro on the bridge of his nose, "Stay here, if you want to."

Zoro didn't. He followed Sanji to the customer who had entered.

"Robin, my beautiful. It's a pleasure to see you," Sanji welcomed her and showed her to a table.

"That's lovely of you, Sanji. I should come here more often," she replied smiling at him and then looked at Zoro. "So the rumours about you are true. I'm Robin. It's a pleasure to meet you, Zoro," she introduced herself and took the seat Sanji offered her. "He's beautiful," she added and smiled at Sanji again.

Zoro snorted next to her and she started giggling.

"That was rude," Sanji said glaring at him but Zoro didn't mind it. He sat down next to Robin and curiously looked at her.

"I think he's just not used to compliments," Robin replied and petted Zoro's head. "At least not regarding your looks, right Zoro?"

"What's going on here?" Sanji asked confused. "Do you know anything about him?"

She just smiled at him and ordered a cup of coffee. When Sanji left to get it for her he noticed that Zoro didn't follow him but stayed with Robin. He brewed her a cup of coffee and returned just to find her talking to Zoro as if she had known him forever-despite the fact that he was a dog. When he was close enough to finally understand what she was saying she changed the topic.

"Was it hard to persuade Zeff to let him stay with you?" she asked and took the cup he placed in front of her to take a sip from it.

"I didn't really ask and he didn't complain."

"That's good to know. Zoro seems to be the faithful type so I guess you'll have him around for quite a while. It's a pity that dogs die quite early compared to humans."

Zoro shook his head and walked over to the bar to lay down and take a nap again.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Robin asked and Sanji noticed that he had been staring at Zoro.

"What do you mean, Robin, love?"

"It's quite obvious that the two of you have a special connection," she said and Sanji could feel his blood drain from his face. He knew that Robin was very observant and if any of his friends was to find out about them being soulmates it was her. Still, he didn't want her or anybody else to know about it. Zoro was his and his alone.

"It's very kind of you to say that," he tried to avoid a direct answer to her suspicions. "We just sort of clicked."

She nodded and didn't probe into the subject but Sanji knew that she had a lot more to say. He just wasn't sure if he wanted to hear it so he kept changing topics whenever she tried to talk about Zoro until she left again.

The lunch rush hit the Baratie all of a sudden and didn't subside until after dinner which meant it went on until close to midnight. All in all it was an ordinary Friday and once again Sanji wanted nothing more than to fall asleep when he came home. He brushed his teeth, took off his clothes and crawled into bed, slumping onto his pillow face first. When he turned his head to the side to say good night to Zoro he looked into the smiling face of his human form again.

"You are early," he welcomed him and Zoro's smile grew even wider.

"You are just late," Zoro said and sat up. Sanji's gaze wander over his naked chest and he cautiously stretched out his hand to let it wander over the huge scar that covered it. The healed would felt firmer than the skin around it while it was a bit silkier to the touch. Touching Zoro really felt like coming home. Maybe he would apologize to Usopp when he saw him the next time. He had been unfair as just ignorant people could be and he was sorry. But now was not the time to be thinking about Usopp but about the man of his dreams, so to say.

"Today was really busy," Sanji said and a tired smile appeared on his lips. "As you might know."

"I do. And I know that you are tired again-but this time I won't let you sleep," Zoro replied grabbing Sanji's hand and pressing a kiss onto his palm. "I don't get to talk to you a lot and I really want to do so now."

"Then talk. Tell me all there is to know about you." Sanji was incredibly happy that Zoro showed interest in him and wanted to talk to him so he forced his eyes back open. He hadn't even noticed that he had closed them.

"My name is Zoro Roronoa. I was born on 11th November and I'm 20 years old." It figured that Zoro was his age even though it wouldn't have mattered to him. Sanji's eyes fell shut again while listening to Zoro's soothing voice.

"I worked as a martial arts teacher," Zoro went on telling details about himself. "I taught children and sometimes adults the art of sword fighting, which means mostly kendo."

The bed sheets rustled and Sanji could suddenly feel Zoro's warm hands on his lower back and the warmth of Zoro's lower thighs next to his hip as he straddled them. Slowly his hands started kneading Sanji's back. It was intense. The warmth of his touch immediately spread through Sanji's entire body.

"I competed in national and international kendo matches until I realised that it wasn't getting me anywhere."

"Were you that bad?" Sanji asked hoping that the answer wouldn't be yes.

"No. I was the world champion. But like I said-it didn't get me near to what I really wanted. I need to be better than that. I have to become the best swordfighter in the world."

"And by swordfighter you mean the real deal? With sharp blades and blood and everything?" Sanji asked looking at him over his shoulder.

"Exactly. What did you think where I got these scars from?"

Actually, Sanji hadn't thought about the cause of Zoro's scars so far. The most likely explanation would have been a car accident.

"I don't know. Maybe you were hit by a car," he said and Zoro snorted.

"That's lame. Who gets hit by a car anyway?"

"Why did you quit teaching?" Sanji asked ignoring the question. He also decided to ignore the fact that he was dreaming again. For now he wanted Zoro to be real.

"I quit a year ago when I got the chance to be taught by..." his voice left Zoro and his grip tightened as it did. "Seems like I can't tell you about this either. It really starts to piss me off."

"I guess asking you about why you can't tell me about certain things won't help either," Sanji mused and let his head fall back onto the pillow.

"I'm not even sure if I know the answer," Zoro admitted and Sanji smiled.

"Whatever caused this situation, I'm grateful I met you."

Sanji felt Zoro shift his weight and a moment later he felt a feather light kiss against the back of his neck. It tickled a little.

"I'm the one grateful for meeting you," he murmured against Sanji's skin. "If I believed in love at first sight I would say you had my heard the moment I set eyes on you. But since I don't I guess it was at breakfast that I realised that I would really enjoy seeing your smiling face every morning from now on."

"Are you telling me that you are in love with me?" Sanji asked and felt his ears turn hot. This situation was so surreal it embarrassed him. Zoro was just everything he could have hoped for: he was beautiful in a fierce way, built like a demigod, easy to get along with and he was intriguing. The little time Sanji had spent with him was full of surprises and making him hope it would never end. Apart from the fact that his heart was racing and his head was spinning with joy.

"I guess. I've never felt like this before so I wouldn't know what this feeling is called," Zoro replied and his hands started roaming over Sanji's back. "I want... you. I want to be with you and it's not because of this stupid soulmate thing. I want _you_. All of you, whatever that means."

"This is just too good to not be a dream," Sanji sighed trying to cope with the happiness that was close to make him burst with joy.

"What makes you think this is a dream?" Zoro asked chuckling. "I'm as real as you are."

"Then prove it," Sanji insisted and a moment later Zoro's soft kisses turned into semi-painful bites along the nape of his neck and shoulder. It wasn't unpleasant, on the contrary, it caused Sanji's entire body to tingle with excitement and before Sanji knew what was going on he was turned onto his back and facing Zoro's intense gaze.

"May I kiss you?" Zoro asked and let his thumb caress over Sanji's lower lip.

"To your heart's content," Sanji replied smiling. He was still convinced that this simply had to be a dream and there was no reason to deny Zoro his wish. If he wanted to make sure that his joy was connected with feelings like love for Zoro this was the best way to do so. Even though it wouldn't get him anywhere to fall in love with a dream.

Their lips met and he sighed at the feelings the touch stirred in him. His stomach was suddenly filled with butterflies which were thrashing around, leaving him gasping for air. Zoro's tongue slid into his mouth and the sensation of their tongues clashing together made him moan in pleasure. If just a kiss was able to do this to him he didn't dare imagine what else Zoro's touch could do to him.

Slowly, Zoro broke their kiss and started exploring Sanji's upper body with a mixture of soft kisses, tender bites and licks of his tongue. But suddenly the sensation was gone when Sanji opened his eyes he met Zoro's unreadable gaze. The light which fell through the windows wasn't enough to let Sanji see all of Zoro's face but something told him that Zoro was upset.

"If I had to leave you for a while-would you wait for me?," Zoro said quietly and Sanji sat up to be able to see his face from a closer angle and the desperation in his gaze made Sanji's heart ache. He didn't know what to do. He wanted to touch Zoro to make him feel better but also he needed to know why he considered leaving.

"What do you mean by ' leave me for a while'?" he therefore asked. Zoro looked down at his hands and reached for Sanji's slowly taking it into his own and caressing it with his thumb. "Zoro, what's wrong?"

"The girl we met," Zoro finally said and looked at Sanji again, "She reminded me of something I had forgotten and a part of me still doesn't want to remember. But as much as I want it, being with you is not an option. Not now. I have a life to return to."

It hurt more than anything Sanji had ever felt in his life. It hurt even more than starving had.

"I won't be gone for more than a year. I promise I'll come back as soon as I can."

"But where would you go? And why?" Sanji questioned further. He still didn't understand why this dream suddenly turned into a nightmare. Zoro tried to explain but once again no words left his mouth.

"Seems like I still can't talk about that peculiar topic." Zoro frowned. "Okay, maybe I can explain it like that-I made a promise years ago and I would do anything to keep it. Even if it means that I'll have to leave you for a while, because I have a once in a lifetime chance to help me fulfil that promise. I'll explain everything properly once I come back."

"I see," Sanji said. Maybe dogs could make promises among each other. Why not? Keeping a promise was important and if that meant Zoro would have to leave him, then there was nothing he could do about it. Even though he didn't like it. "Is there anything I can do to help you?"

Finally, a smile appeared on Zoro's lips. He leant forward and gently kissed Sanji's lips before he pulled him into a tight embrace. "Just wait for me. That's all the help I need."

The next morning Zoro had been gone and the longest year Sanji had ever been through had begun. The marks Zoro had left on Sanji's body the night before had proved either that Sanji had finally gone insane or that Zoro hadn't been a dream but real. It had been hell to try and be patient, especially since Robin had told him that there actually was a rather famous sportsman named Roronoa Zoro. When she had shown him a picture of Zoro from an old newspaper Sanji had nearly fainted. The headline of the newspaper had been that he had gone missing a year before he and Sanji had met. Robin hadn't asked why he wanted to know about Roronoa Zoro. She didn't have to since it was obvious that she had figured out the riddle herself already.

The longer Zoro had been gone, the worse Sanji's temper became, he felt lonely, heartbroken and he desperately craved for Zoro's return. He had counted the days and only when half a year had passed his mood had slowly balanced again and he had become bearable company again.

But the year had passed and Zoro hadn't come back.

He should have been back a week ago and Sanji's mood had gotten worse every passing day he hadn't returned.

"Sanji, we are worried over you," Nami suddenly said and pulled Sanji onto the empty chair next to her. It was Thursday and Luffy, Nami and Usopp were visiting him again like they had done for a felt eternity. They were sitting outside again and everything about their situation reminded Sanji of the day when Luffy had dragged Zoro here. It made his heart ache with sorrow.

"Why would you be worried, Nami, my lovely swan?" he asked and even to him his words sounded hollow.

"Because you look heartbroken again," Usopp explained and the deep frown on his face was enough to make Sanji feel guilty for not telling them why he was acting the way he was. The term heartbroken was more than perfect for describing his situation. He felt like dying just to get rid of this emptiness inside him and the pain it caused.

"Again?" asked knowing exactly what they were talking about.

"It's been a year since Zoro disappeared," Luffy explained and hit the nail on the head. They truly were great friends for seeing right through him.

"It's been a year and a week," Nami corrected him and Sanji nodded.

"I miss him," Sanji said when he suddenly felt a long missed tingling sensation in his chest. He bolted to his feet, throwing over the chair he had been sitting on, and whirling around just to stop in his movement when his eyes fell on Zoro who was standing a couple meters away. They both didn't move and Sanji felt like laughing and crying at the same time. Shoving his hands deep into his pockets he slowly strolled over to Zoro, trying to fight down the emotions which were mercilessly rushing over him.

"You are late," he whispered, his voice failing him. Zoro just looked at him, his breath ragged and his clenched fists shaking with tension.

"I missed you so much," Zoro finally said and closed the gap between them by pulling Sanji into a fierce embrace. Sanji could feel the tension and pain drain from his body and being replace by the warmth of Zoro's body and the knowledge that he was back for good.

"I love you," Sanji tried to say but it sounded more like a choked back sob. "Don't think I'll ever let you leave me again."

"I won't go anywhere," Zoro replied with a warmth in his voice that melted Sanji's heart. Hesitantly, Sanji let go of Zoro's coat he had buried his hands in and took half a step back so he could look at his lover but Zoro immediately pulled him back again into a deep kiss, expressing the desperate longing they both had felt for each other for more than a year. It felt as if time had stopped just for the two of them so they could savour the moment.

When they broke the kiss the world was in balance again. Sanji was ready to burst with joy and smiling his first genuine smile in a year.

"I was close to going insane without you," he said and caressed Zoro's cheek. "Or am I dreaming again?"

"I told you I was real. The pink haired girl we met, Perona, as you might remember, well, we were arguing about all this soulmate nonsense. I said it was stupid, she insisted it was not-and to prove me wrong she offered a deal to me. She had found a book with ancient curses to help people find their soulmates and I agreed. In my opinion neither soulmates nor curses existed. I was wrong," he started explaining what had happened to him more than a year ago.

"But that doesn't explain why you were a dog," Sanji mused thinking about Zoro's explanation.

"Perona had always wanted a cute puppy to play with and, as luck had it, there was a curse including shape-shifting in this godforsaken book. She even had the nerve to buy me a collar in advance," Zoro stated looking quite unhappy. "Fortunately, the curse was time-limited to a week and since I was useless to Mihawk, the man I lived with for the past two years, he agreed to give me a one week break. If I hadn't returned in time he would have refused to let me complete my training. And he is the best swordfighter there is, so..."

"I see," Sanji said. Zoro had told him about his ambition and he would have done the same thing had he been in Zoro's shoes. You just didn't throw away your aims in life for love. It was romantic but incredibly stupid and he wouldn't have appreciated it. Because real love was able to withstand being separated for a year. "But why weren't you able to talk about the curse?" he finally asked.

"I have no idea. Persona said something about unconditional love and trust and I really didn't listen. But that aside, it took me ages to find my way back here. For the life of me, I couldn't remember the name of your restaurant, or the name of the street it is in..."

Sanji shut him up with another kiss.

"As long as you are back I don't really care why you are late or if you're a man, a dog or a dream."

Zoro leaned into his touch and looked at him with serious eyes. "I'll tell you one last time: I'm a man, I'm real and I love you."

 **-xXx-**

 **The End**


End file.
